Transmission gear unit mounting



May 22, 1956 R. M. ULRICH TRANSMISSION GEAR UNIT MOUNTING Filed May 17, 1951 v United 2,746,316 'rnaNsMrssroN UNIT MOUNTWG y nd lUl c t noke; Y -r ass e m t Ulrich Foundation; Inc., a corporation of Delaware Appraisal May 17, 1951-; steam. 226,89

' sciairns. (Cl. 74-385 The present invention. relates to a transmission gear unit mounting providing certain degrees of freedom of motionof the housing of the unit.

' During'recent years there has been developed an elevating attachmentfor motor graders. This attachment "consists of a plow and an elevating 'eonveyor carried transversely of the motor grader; The motor grader has an elongated frame which extends forwardly of the cab'and drivers position. The elevating attachment is located between the cab and-thefront wheels. In back ofy-the cab isflo cated the power unit and several sets of driving wheels. A power take-olf'is provided-forthe motor, whieh is atthe rear of the grader Power is supplied from the take-off to a "shaft eXtending'length-wis'e of the frame ofthe motor grader to, a point in the proximity of the front portionof thefcabi Here a transmission gear unit is connected to the shaft and another shaft extends *at right angleslthereto. This shaft is preferably a portion of a telescopic driving shaft, arrangementter-mi-nating in a universal joint, which in turn is connected to another transmission gear unit which drives the drum upon which is mounted'the endless belt'of the conveyor. Y j

In operation the" conveyor portion of the attachment may be arranged at various angles dependent upon the conditions of operation and'the type of work beingv done. Thus the shaft extending from t-hegear transmission unit adjacent the cab of .the grader-[may assume one "of a number of positions so that the shaft in effect is moved through an appreciable angle in a vertical plane.

,It has been found undersuch conditions of operation that it is difiicult to properly align the gear transmission .unit when making the installation; and even when his properly aligned, the units are subject to certain shock and Wear which could be minimized or eliminated by a unique mprin ingarrangement. If been fdund that by providing a mounting arrangement which permits the housing of the gear transmission unit ,to oscillate or move 1 'rbugh a certain angle, much shock and wear is' iriininil-zed; and compared to the conventional construction, one ofth'e universal joints heretofoi e made has been eliminated. i p

It t erefore is an object of the present inventiea to pr ide a mounting for a gear unit which "will eliminate the need rat a universal joint.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a gear transmission unit mounting which will minimize the wear on the bearings of the unit.

A further object of the invention is to provide a mounting for a gear transmission unit which will facilitate the alignment of the unit without shafts interconnected thereby. 1

A further object of the present invention is to provide an improved gear transmission unit arrangement which will facilitate alignment of one of the shafts connected thereto; i

A still further object of the present invention is to provide a transmission unit mounting which will mini- States Patento ice mi zewthe shock and wear otherwisetransmitted to the unit.

Still another object is to provide an improved mounting fora transmission-gear unit which will facilitate the adjustment of the-position of an element driven by said unit.-

Other and further objects of the present invention subsequently will become apparent by reference to the following description taken in conjunction .with the accompanying drawings, wherein? Figure 1 is a perspective vieWshowing a portion of a typical apparatus to which the present invention has been applied; 7

Figure 2 is a front view of one embodiment of the present invention; I p J Figure 3 is an end view of the embodiment shown in Figure 2; s i

Figure 4 'isan end view of another embodiment ofthe present invention; and v a Figure5 is aplan view of the embodiment shown in Hea t t l In Figure 1 there is shown a portion of a motor grader whichhas rear drivingwheels' 11 and front steering wheels 12 carriedbya frame which at an intermediate point carries a drivers cab 14. Arranged transversely of the frame 13 between the. cab 14 and the front wheels 12 an elevating attachment, a portion of which 15 is visible in Figure 1. This portion consists primarily of an endless belt conveyor.

Tlie' dri'ving motor for the motor grader is located to therear'of the cab; 14 and is provided with a power take olf unit connected to' a' shafflii arranged generally parallel to the rear portionof the frame '13. At a point .just ahead of the cab 14 there is located a mounting bracke't' 17 which carriescertain elements supporting a gear transmission u'ni't" The unit 181interconnects the shaft 16 another shaft 19 arranged at right angles thereto. The shaft 19 is aportion ofa drive shaft which ineludes atele'scopic shaft por'tion 21 terminating in a-uni- "ve'r i nt '22-. The universal joint 22 is connected to a terminating in another universal joint 24, which connected to the-stub shaft of'a transmission gear unit 25 supported from a bracket '26 at the" outer end of the qqriveyerj frame 15-. The particular conveyor frame shown" is orn'e which may be shortened by taking out a portion of the frame and removing a portion of the conveyor belt. When this is done the shaft 23 and the universalfjoint 24 alsoare removed so that the universal joint 22 is conncted directly to the stub shaft of. the transmission gearuiiit ZS,

Thetrahsinission unit 25 connects to a shaft which drives a rerystpiplying motive p'owferjto the endless ut of the elevating conveyo '15. This l-um must be arranged to be adjustab'le wi'thincertain limits so that er tension n ey be' applied to the belt. The drum fur- "th bre must alsdue adjustable so as to produce smooth operation bfth'e endless belt, without" causing it tobear heavily-against one e or the other: at the frame of the elevating" attachment 15.

In prior embodiments the shaft 19 had been provided with the universal joint which was connected to the stub shaft of the transmission gear unit 18. It has been found difficult to properly position the gear transmission unit 18 in the past so as to provide proper alignment with the two shafts which the unit is to interconnect. Since the conveyor 15 may be arranged through different angles, it readily will be appreciated that appreciable wear might occur in the universal joint. Furthermore it was found that certain shocks were transmitted as the grader moved down the road which tended to place undue stress upon the bearings of the transmission unit. In accordance with the present invention these effects were greatly mini- Patented May 22', 1956- a predetermined amount.

- a 3 mized by the construction and 3.

Referring to Figures 2 and 3 it will be noted that the bracket 17 attached to the frame ahead of the cab 14 carries two U-shaped depending members 27 and 28 held in position by bolts and nuts 29 and 31. The transmission unit 18 has a housing which is provided with cylindrical bearing members 32 and 33. The one U-shaped member 27 carries a cooperating bearing member 34 for the housing portion 32. It is pivotally supported between the two U-shaped legs of the member 27 by suitable cap screws 35. In a similar manner the other heating portion 33 of the housing is engaged by a bearing 36, which is pivotally supported by cap screws 37 passing through the, two legs of the U-shaped support 28.

Mounted on the housing 18 is a stop member 38 which extends between the legs of the U-shaped support 28 thereby to limit the amount of rotation of the casing of the transmission unit 18 with respect to the supporting structure.

From the foregoing it will be noted that by supporting the Ushaped members 27 and 28 from the bracket 17 by single bolts 29 and 31, the alignment of the transmission unit 18 with respect to the axial line of the shaft 16 is facilitated. The pivotal support of the bearing members 34 and 36 further facilitates correct alignment of the transmission unit 18 with respect to the axial center of the shaft 16. The bearing supports 34 and 33 permit the housing unit to rotate through a certain angle thereby to accommodate the variations in the'angle' of the shaft 19 depending upon the degree of elevation of the upper shafts at right angles toeach other, which. will permit rotation of the housing of the transmission gear unit to This arrangement facilitates installation and minimizes wear.

Referring to Figures 4 and there is shown the upper gear transmission unit 25, which connects the shafts 20 and 30, the latter shaft being connected to the drum which drives the conveyor belt. The shaft 20 is connec'ted to the universal joint'24 of Figure 1. The shaft 30 is engaged by a bearing or pillow block 39 supported on the underside of the bracket 26 by a plurality of bolts 41. The bolts 41 pass through elongated openings 42 in the bracket 26. In Figure 5 it will be noted that the bolts 41 are at one extremity of the respective openings 42, which generally is the initial position prior to the time that the conveyor belt begins to stretch. Each of the bolts 41 above the bracket 261s provided with a spacing sleeve 43, which is engaged by a plate 44 held in position by the nuts 45. From this it willbe noted that the transmission unit 25 is primarily supported by the pillow block bearing 39 engaging the shaft 30. The housing of the transmission unit 25 is permitted a certain degree of angular rotation which is limited by a bracket 46 having two prongs 47 located between the bracket 26 and the plate 44. Thus an arrangement is provided which permits adjustment of the position of the shaft 30 to change the position of the belt driving drum connected thereto. In addition, the freedom of rotation of the housing 25 through a predetermined angle minimizes the wear on the shown in detail in Figures 2 I bearings of the housing and facilitates proper alignment of the unit with respect to the two shafts interconnected thereby.

While for the purpose of illustrating and describing the present invention certain specific embodiments have been shown in the drawing, it is to be understood that such variations in the components employed and in their arrangement are contemplated as may be commensurate with the spirit and scope of the invention set forth in the accompanying claims.

It further is to be understood that while each of the transmission housings and mounting is of dilferent construction and performs some different functions, that a common function is performed by both of them.

I claim as my invention:

1. A transmission gear unit interconnecting two rotating power transmitting shafts maintained at right angles to each other at all times and having a unitary housing movable about the axis of one of said shafts, a fixed support bracket, a bearing for one of said shafts mounted on said bracket, said bracket and said bearing being interconnected by means for adjustment of the position of said housing relative to said bracket in a direction perpendicular to the axis of said shaft, and stop means carried by said housing for engaging said bracket to limit the rotation of said housing about the axis of said shaft to a predetermined amount.

2. The combination comprising a transmission gear unit interconnecting two power transmitting shafts at right angles to each other at all times, the axis of one of said shafts being stationary, the axis of the other of said shafts being angularly movable in the plane of its axis, said unit having a housing freely supported by said shafts, a fixed support bracket, means interposed between said bracket and said housing to support said unit from said bracket and to permit rotary movement of said unit about the axis of one of said shafts, and a member'connected to said housing for engaging said bracket to limit the oscillation thereof relative to said bracket.

3. The combination comprising a plurality of power transmitting shafts maintained at right angles to each other, a bevel gear transmission unit interconnecting said shafts, said unit having a unitary housing movable about the axis of one of said shafts, a bearing for one of said shafts located externally of said housing, a support for said bearing, said support being independent of said housing and providing for limited adjustment of the position of said housing transversely to the axis thereof, a bracket mounted on said housing, and means interconnecting said support and said bracket to permit limited movement of said housing about the axis of one of said shafts.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 520,598 Howe May 29, 1894 573,424 Denton' May 7, 1901 690,891 McCoy Jan. 7, 1902 1,801,781 Parsons Apr. 21, 1931 2,050,497 McCollum Apr." 11, 1936 2,261,901 Erdman Nov. 4, 1941 2,296,518 Greer et al. Sept. 22, 1942 

